Home distilling is regulated by law in Australia. Aussies can own a still of 5l or smaller and they don’t need permission to do so. If the still is bigger than 5l, people need permission from the ATO (Australian Taxation Office). So, if you’re a beginner, it’s better to start with a smaller still and see if you like it or not. Having the right equipment and ingredients can help you speed up the process and make it easier and much more enjoyable.
Equipment You Need
Mash Tun
It all begins in the mash tun. Here you combine water and grist so-called ground malt at regulated temperatures. The starches turn to sugars because of the gentle heating. This process is called saccharification. The tun separates the liquid from the grains thanks to the false bottom with a screen. As a result, you get the wort which is now ready to step into the next part of the process, the fermentation.
Fermentation Vessel
When you buy an easy-to-use home brew spirit kit, you’ll see that the fermentation vessel plays a big part in the process. It’s basically a large container where you add the wort and mix in yeast so the sugars can ferment into alcohol. The main thing here is to control the temperature for a few days. Make sure the vessel has a pressure release valve so the gasses created by fermentation can come out. If you’re a beginner, you’ll need just one vessel. But if you plan on expanding and producing more, you’ll need to upgrade and buy a few more.
Pot Still
A pot still has one purpose. It serves for boiling the wort in one batch. Many people compare it to a big kettle. It has a lid that tapers up to a tube from where the gasses escape. These stills are perfect if you produce a large amount of spirits. But they can be hard to re-fill and clean so they’re not recommended for beginners.
Column Still
This still is made of a tube and vertical distillation plates. These plates hold the liquid and let it evaporate. However, they don’t give a lot of flavour and homebrewers use them to make lighter-flavoured drinks such as gin, rum and vodka.
Condenser
This is a coiled tube that lets the evaporated spirits cool and condense. It does this with the help of cold water circulations. It’s usually connected to a tank where the liquid drips. Condensers can be active and use a coolant called glycol, or passive and use air or water. Which one you’ll use depends on the size of the still you have.
Filtration
Before storing the product, you should filtrate it. There are several options available. You can use filter cartridges, bag filters or filter sheets. They will clarify dark spirits, remove particles and polish out the white spirits.
Storage & Aging Vessels
When you’re done with distillation, you’ll need a place to store the product. You’ll potentially need to age it as well. There are plenty of storage options available. One of the most common ones are the stainless-steel tanks and oak barrels. Once the liquid is aged enough, you can store it in bottles.
Ingredients to Use
Gin
The main ingredient in gin is neutral grains. This includes corn, rye, barley and wheat. They give you a nice, clean base so you can play with botanicals and add the flavour that you want. The most common botanical is juniper. It gives gin that authentic pine taste and smell. Additions like citruses, cardamom, cinnamon or liquorice are also an option.
Tequila
Tequila is distilled from the blue agave plant, its fermented juices to be precise. Once the plant’s core is cooked, manufacturers extract the juices. The agave can give the tequila a different flavour depending on where it comes from. Highland plants are sweeter and lowland ones are often earthy.
Another thing that can make a difference in flavour is the aging vessel. If it ages in a barrel, the spirit will get infused with its colours and aromas. With your home brew spirit kit, you can make tequila Blanco, Reposado, Añejo and Extra Añejo.
Vodka
There are no rules when it comes to making vodka. You can basically go with any agricultural product that has starch or sugar. Every one of them can be its base ingredient. The most popular choices are corn, wheat and rye. However, a lot of people turn to potatoes as the base because they’re gluten-free.
Rum
To distil rum, you’ll need some type of sugar such as molasses or more commonly, sugar cane. The flavour and sugar content can vary from one region to another. You can make two types of rum, light and dark. The light one is aged in stainless steel tanks and the dark one is aged in oak barrels. To make it darker or give it another shade, some people use colouring.
Whiskey
Whiskey is one of the most popular homebrew spirits. It’s mostly made of oats, rye, wheat, barley or corn. Sometimes two or three of these grains are mixed together to create one drink. This gives the spirit more flavour diversity.
Distillation Process
The first thing to do is to clean and sanitise your equipment. This is important because bacteria can contaminate the yeast. If this happens, the process won’t be complete and you might get odd flavours or even infections. The next step is to make a wash. This is a process that involves steeping the grains in warm water to let them ferment from the yeast enzymes.
Distillation is next. Add the wash in the still, and when it reaches a certain temperature it will make the alcohol evaporate and condense into liquid again. Then, it exits the still. Discard the first portion of distillate because those alcohols aren’t meant for consumption.
Next comes diluting and filtering. The alcohol that comes out is pretty strong so you need to dilute it so you can use it as a spirit. You can use gravity-fed filters or paper filters. They’re great at removing particles and preserving the taste at the same time.
Now you can add the flavourings. This depends on your personal preferences. Feel free to explore and experiment with flavours, as there are thousands of options available. You can age the liquid in a jar or oak barrels. The first one won’t influence the flavour and aroma, but the second option will add a taste and smell of its own.
